If there weren't serious concerns over the Pirates bullpen prior to Friday, they certainly exist now.
After Gregory Soto blew a three-run lead in the ninth, Dennis Santana struggled in the 10th inning of an eventual 11-9 Pirates loss to the Phillies at PNC Park.
The loss was undoubtedly frustrating for the Pirates, who have a top-five offense (229 runs, fourth) and rank sixth in ERA by the starting rotation (3.50) … but also have plenty of work to do in the bullpen.
“We need to keep getting after it, keep working and find a way,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “You have to go out there and stay within yourself and not press.
“I think that’s what can sometimes end up happening. You try too hard, and the stuff isn’t what it can be.”
Pittsburgh led, 8-3, after six innings but couldn't close it out, Kelly's club losing for the fourth time in 23 tries when leading after a half-dozen frames.
It's also the seventh loss for the Pirates this season when scoring at least six runs. A big reason has been a bullpen that now has a 5.90 ERA in May.
“We know the guys are gonna continue to work,” Kelly said. “We have to free them up to continue to do what we’ve seen them do in the past.”
If you rewind back to the offseason, the Pirates expected the top five in their bullpen to include Soto, Santana, Isaac Mattson, Justin Lawrence and Mason Montgomery.
Perhaps the home run Montgomery allowed to Kyle Schwarber can be excused; Schwarber leads MLB with 20 and has nine in his past eight games. Montgomery had not allowed a run in 12 straight appearances.
But Evan Sisk is pretty much the only reliever who has performed better than expectations, which can’t continue.
Philadelphia grabbed a 9-8 lead in the 10th on a double from right fielder Brandon Marsh, who came within feet of knocking the ball over the right-field fence. Catcher Rafael Marchan followed two batters later by lining a sinker to center to increase Philadelphia's lead to 11-8.
The Phillies' ninth-inning rally started with left fielder Edmundo Sosa reaching on an error by Konnor Griffin. A walk and a single loaded the bases for Schwarber, who had two home runs in the game.
Soto walked Schwarber, making it an 8-6 game before first baseman Bryce Harper cranked a slider to center field for a 388-foot single. That brought in two more, tying the game at 8.
“It’s always a punch in the gut, but you take the positives out of them when and where you can,” Lowe said. “You have to understand what could have been done differently, flush it and be ready to go tomorrow.”
For much of the night it looked like the heroics would belong to Lowe, who enjoyed his third multi-homer game of the season.
Braxton Ashcraft pitched into the seventh inning, and Marcell Ozuna also homered. But it wasn't enough to absorb another bullpen meltdown.
How frustrating was it? The Pirates also had a 6-0 lead after three, thanks to the most runs Pittsburgh has scored against Philadelphia here since July 4, 2010 (6 in an 8-5 win).
But none of that matters if the bullpen can’t close the door. The Pirates now have 10 blown saves, third-most in MLB, which obviously can’t happen.
The Pirates have to find internal improvement. Perhaps Carmen Mlodzinski slides to a new role when Jared Jones comes back. General manager Ben Cherington may have to act earlier than he had planned.
Whatever the case, the Pirates lost a winnable game Friday because their bullpen couldn’t get it done.
Ashcraft's night
Ashcraft allowed four earned runs over 6 2/3 innings. He gave up seven hits but didn’t walk anyone and struck out five, his ERA increasing a little to 3.09.
Spin pitches carried the day for Ashcraft, as they accounted for all five of his strikeouts. It might not have been Ashcraft's best stuff, but it was more than enough to give the Pirates a chance to win.
Kelly let Ashcraft start the seventh at 91 pitches but pulled him to go left-on-left when Schwarber came up for a fourth time. The move made sense.
Unfortunately for the Pirates, Schwarber didn’t miss a middle-middle fastball from Montgomery, crushing it 408 feet at 110.7 mph to center.
Ashcraft bemoaned an earlier middle-middle fastball he threw to Schwarber (which resulted in a home run) and another heater to Justin Crawford leading off the seventh that was right down the middle.
“Looking back at my outing, those are the two pitches that I really want back,” Ashcraft said. “It’s tough to swallow.”
Hernandez debuts
Seth Hernandez, Pittsburgh’s top prospect with Konnor Griffin graduating to MLB regular, debuted with High-A Greensboro, and his outing looked similar to what he did at Low-A Bradenton.
Hernandez didn’t allow a run or a hit over five innings at Jersey Shore, walking four and striking out seven. The right-hander threw 70 pitches, 41 for strikes. He also racked up 18 whiffs.
In seven Minor League starts this season, Hernandez has a 0.82 ERA in 33 innings while walking 11 and striking out 57.
Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH on X.